2013 Paradisus Palma Real

[angelnjewels]

I'm on the fence about the passport invitations. We spent $300 on ours for 50 invites. They are absolutely gorgeous, unique, and they really set the tone for the wedding, but there are many cheaper alternatives and if you can cut corners, invitations may be a good place because people kind of dismiss them and toss them aside. However, you aren't going to save a significant amount- maybe just $50-$100 so it really depends on whether you are that strapped or not.  I wanted to book my mothers room for her but we just couldn't slice it with our budget. What's the issue with the bridal shower? We managed to find an inexpensive venue but of course, my mother managed to somehow make it expensive for herself with decor and gifts and games etc. LOL  We booked a group air and then two people on it decided to stay in DR longer and put is in a predicament, luckily our travel agent did all the wheeling and dealing for us and got them off without penalty to us.  I say have a clear conversation with your parents and be frank- we want to book your trip so we can book ours but I need to know what your plan will be. Are you staying to visit family or are you just there for festivities. It would help if your fiance is there too so this way everyone is on the same page and if they change their mind you can remind them of the choice they made. Maybe even sit with them when you book it kind of like "are you sure, I'm going to book it right now" and do it on the spot.  Good luck with everything! It's hard not to let people take away your joy but try not to. It's your moment!

Hey Ev, Thanks a bunch my parents and I are going to have one more meeting I was going to have them stay 5-6 nights but now I'm just going to do 3-4 I just can't afford to pay 232pp... What was your rate per night? The issue with the bridal sheer is that my sis said that her husband cannot attend the wedding since they "have to" throw a shower for me and they have plans to buy a house.... I said that I do not need a shower my fiancé and I already live together but she insists because when She got married I did her shower... I recommended that she use the Pine restaurant where I had hers but she said she wants a catering hall.she even hired photographer.., anyway my ml and sl really want To help and I offered to pay for some of it but she's kinda putting us off... My fiance really wants my brother in law to go but there excuse is that they have to throw our shower..... Make me feel guilty.... She says she is busy but I would like to have a rich so they can exchange numbers and talk but again idk..... Regarding the passport invites they are going to be $5 each plus everything else that goes along with it....I was going to use zazzle and create my own but they look a bit cheap... Who did you use for your invites??? People make it difficult... Then my parents were arguing about who they will invite in DR... I said that I would have to pay their entrance so it kinda sucks for me.... I sent out my std's in April and asked that ppl reply ( yes, no, or not sure at this time) by June first just to get an idea of what package to choose I have gotten about 15 response cards... People said they can't tell me at all yet I'm like ok fine... It's just frustrating,.. My fiancé really wants the tailor made package but we still have to see... It's so much money but he doesn't mind paying... Ugh the drama I really hope everything works out

[deanna1]

HI! Would you be able to email me the pictures I can't open them for some reason: [email protected]

I'm getting married in November at the garden gazebo as well. How was it? I'm just a little concerned about the bride's entrance from the side, how did you find that? Thanks!!

[deanna1]

Originally Posted by Suzhen 

 

Hi Fellow Brides:

 

Brian and I got married on Sunday, May 19th at the Paradisus Palma Real " Reserve." It was truly amazing! We had a Garden Gazebo Ceremony (4:00 p.m.), Beach Terrace Cocktail Hour (5:00 p.m.) and Beach Reception (6:00 p.m.). The locations and timing was perfect. We had great weather. We were expecting really hot and humid and it wasn't at all. There was a great breeze the entire time so we really lucked out. I had a bit of an issue attaching photos... but was finally able to post each one individually. See picture attached!

 

Suzanne and Brian (New Jersey Bride)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hope you enjoyed our pictures. We loved our photographer provided by the hotel. I always forget the spelling, but its something like Arrecife. Amazing work!

 

Good luck Brides!

HI! Would you be able to email me the pictures I can't open them for some reason: [email protected]

I'm getting married in November at the garden gazebo as well. How was it? I'm just a little concerned about the bride's entrance from the side, how did you find that? Thanks!!

[deanna1]

Your pictures are amazing, congrats on a beautiful wedding! I'm getting married in November at the gazebo too and I'm a little concerned about the bride's entrance from the side, how did you find that? Are all of the guests able to see you and were there a lot of people walking by or any other distractions?

Originally Posted by LL117 

Hey Ladies!

 

Here are some of the pictures from our wedding! The files were too large so I had to take screen shots to be able to upload them so the quality isn't as like the pictures we have but Arrecife was fantastic! Let me know if you have any questions I can answer!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Rotha Penn]

Ev & Angel - Hang in there ladies! I almost broke down as well because of family and friends. Honestly, if I had to do it all over again, we would have gone to Bora Bora and gotten married with just the two of us (the way I wanted) but fiancé wanted family part of it - he is regretting this decision since we learned how selfish everyone really is. Here is my review of the resort: While everyone said the wedding was lovely, it did not meet my expectations since there were lots of miscommunication. It just seemed that everything we did via the resort has been difficult and very slow. The only thing I have thoroughly enjoyed was the catamaran I booked myself. I think this could have been corrected if my MOH (sister) stepped up or our family was less needy so I had time to stay on top of the wedding coordinators. I highly recommend a full wedding rehearsal with them and literally run through everything like a dress rehearsal. I spent too much time chasing people down and babysitting that I didn't even get to focus on the event. I don't know if people checked out their brain because they were on vacation or what because I kept getting frustrated that no one knew what was going on or where to be although I had a detailed itinerary as part of their welcome kit....argh At the end of the day, I enjoyed my wedding because I ignored everything and everyone and just tried to focus on the fact I was marrying my best friend. As a result, we had so much fun. We even ran into the ocean with our clothes on and jumped into the pool afterwards - can't wait to see the pictures. I do get heated up when I think about all the details that got screwed up because of the resort and my family but I'm trying to ignore it and enjoy our honeymoon. Heads up if anyone is a foodie like me...the food is a bit on the salty side and a bit average. Please note that I'm a pretty picky eater because I've been fortunate to eat at some amazing places. Makeup - slow but great job. I brought my own makeup but you don't have too. I had a trial run at home so I had specific colors I wanted to use. Primer is a must in this weather. Hair - disasterous, it didn't even make it from the salon at the Reserve to my room at Palma Real. Tip: only tell them up or down because the more intricate, the less likely they will do it right. Let them do what they know how and bring extra hold hairspray for anti-humidity because the stuff they were using was definitely not strong enough. Please block about 3 hours for hair and makeup. If your dress needs to be steamed - make sure to do this ASAP. They almost didn't get this done in time although I was told I only needed to do the day before. Don't stress on shoes like I did. I think I wore my heels for an hour at most. I only wore them during the ceremony and our first dance. I was barefoot for pictures on the beach and wore flats for portraits at Altos de Chavon since we were running around. Cake - we didn't upgrade and it was amazing. We just bought a cake topper and it was perfect. This was our 2nd cake since we had a big one at out AHR. DJ - if you want to save money, get the basic sound system and use your iPod and have your best man or MOH be MC. They will have techs at the table to help turn the music on and off, you just have to prompt them. We did this and we had a blast just as much as our AHR where we had a DJ. After the reception, we went to Red Lounge and danced our butts off until 3 AM (?) Candles - save your money. They don't know how to use them correctly even though it is all over the resort (so frustrating). Splurge - if you can, you should definitely go with the fire show. It was insane and will really wow everyone. Group dinners - book through onsite wedding coordinator. Send request before you get here and follow up when you arrive. We were able to get 18 people at Bana for Welcome Dinner then 15 at Aqua post wedding. Not all the restaurants are open, which is annoying so they can't tell you more than a week's notice. No pics to post yet but here is a sneak pic of the Altos de Chavon shoot:

Holler if you guys have other questions. Wifi is horrible here so my responses may be delayed. Best of luck everyone!!

[EVKnowsitall]

Originally Posted by Rotha Penn 

 

Ev & Angel - Hang in there ladies! I almost broke down as well because of family and friends. Honestly, if I had to do it all over again, we would have gone to Bora Bora and gotten married with just the two of us (the way I wanted) but fiancé wanted family part of it - he is regretting this decision since we learned how selfish everyone really is.

 

Here is my review of the resort:

 

While everyone said the wedding was lovely, it did not meet my expectations since there were lots of miscommunication. It just seemed that everything we did via the resort has been difficult and very slow. The only thing I have thoroughly enjoyed was the catamaran I booked myself. I think this could have been corrected if my MOH (sister) stepped up or our family was less needy so I had time to stay on top of the wedding coordinators. I highly recommend a full wedding rehearsal with them and literally run through everything like a dress rehearsal. I spent too much time chasing people down and babysitting that I didn't even get to focus on the event. I don't know if people checked out their brain because they were on vacation or what because I kept getting frustrated that no one knew what was going on or where to be although I had a detailed itinerary as part of their welcome kit....argh

 

At the end of the day, I enjoyed my wedding because I ignored everything and everyone and just tried to focus on the fact I was marrying my best friend. As a result, we had so much fun. We even ran into the ocean with our clothes on and jumped into the pool afterwards - can't wait to see the pictures.

 

I do get heated up when I think about all the details that got screwed up because of the resort and my family but I'm trying to ignore it and enjoy our honeymoon.

 

Heads up if anyone is a foodie like me...the food is a bit on the salty side and a bit average. Please note that I'm a pretty picky eater because I've been fortunate to eat at some amazing places.

 

Makeup - slow but great job. I brought my own makeup but you don't have too. I had a trial run at home so I had specific colors I wanted to use. Primer is a must in this weather.

 

Hair - disasterous, it didn't even make it from the salon at the Reserve to my room at Palma Real. Tip: only tell them up or down because the more intricate, the less likely they will do it right. Let them do what they know how and bring extra hold hairspray for anti-humidity because the stuff they were using was definitely not strong enough.

 

Please block about 3 hours for hair and makeup.

 

If your dress needs to be steamed - make sure to do this ASAP. They almost didn't get this done in time although I was told I only needed to do the day before.

 

Don't stress on shoes like I did. I think I wore my heels for an hour at most. I only wore them during the ceremony and our first dance. I was barefoot for pictures on the beach and wore flats for portraits at Altos de Chavon since we were running around.

 

Cake - we didn't upgrade and it was amazing. We just bought a cake topper and it was perfect. This was our 2nd cake since we had a big one at out AHR.

 

DJ - if you want to save money, get the basic sound system and use your iPod and have your best man or MOH be MC. They will have techs at the table to help turn the music on and off, you just have to prompt them. We did this and we had a blast just as much as our AHR where we had a DJ. After the reception, we went to Red Lounge and danced our butts off until 3 AM (?)

 

Candles - save your money. They don't know how to use them correctly even though it is all over the resort (so frustrating).

 

Splurge - if you can, you should definitely go with the fire show. It was insane and will really wow everyone.

 

Group dinners - book through onsite wedding coordinator. Send request before you get here and follow up when you arrive. We were able to get 18 people at Bana for Welcome Dinner then 15 at Aqua post wedding. Not all the restaurants are open, which is annoying so they can't tell you more than a week's notice.

 

No pics to post yet but here is a sneak pic of the Altos de Chavon shoot:

 

 

Holler if you guys have other questions. Wifi is horrible here so my responses may be delayed.

 

Best of luck everyone!!

Brutally honest but as I suspected. Communication has been a huge stressor- I think it really just depends on the bride. Some brides have better experiences because they are laid back. If you are worried over details, as I tend to be, then it could be a different experience. I heard about candles haha. I already regret several choices we have made but whatever! We did the cake upgrade anyway- my mom really wanted it. My fiance wanted the fire dancers but we didn't add them. I'm wondering if I can do it there? who knows. I'm pretty amped now because we are just under two weeks away and I cannot believe its here. I'm a creeper and clicked on your altos de chavon pic and saw your profile pic. So cute! I'm glad you focused on what truly mattered which was your marriage and glad you looked past all the flaws. 

 

Can't wait to see the rest of your pics, you were a gorgeous bride! Congrats!

[EVKnowsitall]

Originally Posted by angelnjewels 

 

 

Hey Ev,

 

 

Thanks a bunch my parents and I are going to have one more meeting I was going to have them stay 5-6 nights but now I'm just going to do 3-4 I just can't afford to pay 232pp... What was your rate per night?

 

The issue with the bridal sheer is that my sis said that her husband cannot attend the wedding since they "have to" throw a shower for me and they have plans to buy a house.... I said that I do not need a shower my fiancé and I already live together but she insists because when She got married I did her shower... I recommended that she use the Pine restaurant where I had hers but she said she wants a catering hall.she even hired photographer.., anyway my ml and sl really want To help and I offered to pay for some of it but she's kinda putting us off... My fiance really wants my brother in law to go but there excuse is that they have to throw our shower..... Make me feel guilty.... She says she is busy but I would like to have a rich so they can exchange numbers and talk but again idk.....

 

 

Regarding the passport invites they are going to be $5 each plus everything else that goes along with it....I was going to use zazzle and create my own but they look a bit cheap... Who did you use for your invites???

 

 

People make it difficult... Then my parents were arguing about who they will invite in DR... I said that I would have to pay their entrance so it kinda sucks for me.... I sent out my std's in April and asked that ppl reply ( yes, no, or not sure at this time) by June first just to get an idea of what package to choose I have gotten about 15 response cards... People said they can't tell me at all yet I'm like ok fine... It's just frustrating,.. My fiancé really wants the tailor made package but we still have to see... It's so much money but he doesn't mind paying... Ugh the drama

 

 

I really hope everything works out

 

My shower is at the Pine this saturday haha- the price is really great. It was $1800 with tax and gratuity for 50 people- wine, screwdrivers, mimosas, champagne, breakfast/ lunch buffet, cake. Of course my mom made cake pop and cupcakes and brought bottles of my favorite wine (don't know why, I'll drink anything free hahahahahaha) Showers DO NOT have to be in catering halls, your sister is nuts lol. No offense of course. It's just catering halls tend to have mediocre food and cost too much. Restaurants have better quality food and cost less and some of them have private rooms that are comparably nice to catering halls. My shower is a tea party theme. I didn't want one bc I too live with my fiance but my mom insisted and I feel bad because only my MOH helped her out by giving her $650 towards the cost but my mom did alllll the baking and souvenir making and centerpieces. My mom is nuts lol but I'd be lying if I said I was not pumped. I will post pics or inbox them to you so you can see how nice it will be and show your sister haha. 

 

I say forget the Tailor made. I don't think its worth it but thats my humble opinion. We did Aqua and even that I do not think panned out as being worth it. $5,000 for 24 people, $800 for our overages, and we still needed decor elements. Chill out Chic package is probably the best and then you can use the leftover money you save to do the catamaran or La Barcaza or other cool excursions. 

[Katie83]

Has anyone had a slideshow at their welcome dinner or reception?? I was just wondering where or how they would set this up.

[Rotha Penn]

Sorry, I didn't mean to be Debbie Downer. You are all going to be lovely brides with beautiful weddings. I just wanted to set everyone's expectations so you can communicate that with the Romance team. I had a good debrief with them yesterday and I understand what the mishaps were a result of. Just over communicate and don't sweat the small things and you will have an amazing day. I'm a PR manager and events are part of my job so my expectation levels are off the chart. Now that everyone is gone, we are having a blast on our honeymoon. We upgraded to an oceanfront room in Royal Service and it is spectacular. The private pool and beach areas have become our sanctuary. Francisco at the beach will get you the beds and Gloria the bartender was awesome. If anyone is planning to use a car service for trips outside the resort, book through Romance. Yessica got us a great deal $150 for 4 hours and he took us wherever we wanted. His name was Cesar and he was amazing. He carried my shoes and bottles of water throughout Altos de Chavon in the sweltering heat. Best of luck and let me know if I can answer any other questions.

[EVKnowsitall]

So I just got the email introducing Massiel as my onsite coordinator. Oddly enough, her and I have verbally sparred a few times over the whole DJ fiasco so this should be interesting lol. Hope she does not take it out on me. I am so excited we leave in 12 days and will be married in 14...and i woofed down two slices of pizza today lol BAD IDEA. Anywho- I am so nervous and excited at the same time. It's going to be crazy!!!!!